COUNCIL chiefs are considering charging disabled drivers £10 in Coventry for blue badges that are currently provided for free.

For years Coventry City Council has refused to charge £2 per badge, even though it was entitled to.

But the government is introducing a national database that will saddle the authority with administration costs of up to £60,000 every year.

So the council is considering charging disabled driver the new maximum fee of £10 per badge and has launched a public consultation.

Coun Joe Clifford, cabinet member for health and community services, said no decision had been taken yet.

He said: “It is worth saying that a £10 charge would not cover the full cost of issuing the badges.

"But this is a genuine consultation and we want to know what people think.”

There are currently about 13,000 people in the city with a blue badge. This allows them to park closer to essential amenities such as shops.

A typical blue badge is valid for three years and evidence from a government review claims most motorists save £300 in that time.

That is 30 times what the badge would cost under the proposed changes.

The government has announced a series of reforms to the blue budge scheme. This includes forcing all local authorities to buy badges from a single provider at a higher cost.

So the council could pass on some of the cost to blue badge holders.

Coun Clifford said: “With the extra cost we are facing in issuing these badges, it is worth exploring.”

Campaigners in the city said they were not opposed to the principle of charging for a blue badge and £10 was not a huge sum in itself, but a massive increase in one go.

However, the Council of Disabled People Coventry and Warwickshire (CPD) said there were problems.

Melanie Barton, assistant to the organisation’s chief executive and a blue badge holder, said many disabled people relied on cars to get around and the proposal came at a time when they were already suffering cuts to their benefits.

Meanwhile, Robert Mottram, who manages the Have Your Say project at the CPD, said blue badge holders were denied free parking at a growing number of amenities, including University Hospital and council car parks in Nuneaton and Bedworth.

“If this excludes disabled people from their community it says something about our society,” he said.

There will be three public meetings on the proposed charges at United Reformed Church, Warwick Road, city centre, on January 18 and 25 from midday-1.30pm and on February 1 from 6pm-7.30pm.